mixed blend of chocolate

Jyuuzaengi ~Engetsu Sangokuden~: Extras & Concluding Thoughts

This post includes all the other Momozono scenarios, the special routes for Ba Chou (CV: Sugita Tomokazu), En Chou (CV: Hirakawa Daisuke), Kakou En (CV: Namikawa Daisuke), and my concluding thoughts for the game. Needless to say, spoilers for the whole game and in particular, Chou Un’s bad end and Kakou Ton’s route.

Momozono (You can only see the scenarios while playing the game. So be sure to make appropriate save slots.)

Rakuyou, Ryuu Bi & Sou Sou: Kan U goes to visit Ryuu Bi and sees him drawing. Apparently Sou Sou gave him ink and brushes when he expressed that he wanted to draw. Sou Sou turns up just then, and Kan U vaguely asks if Ryuu Bi is no longer afraid of Sou Sou. Sou Sou sees through her question anyway and says that it’s alright to ask straight-out. Ryuu Bi says that he isn’t, since Sou Sou won’t get angry if he’s a good kid. Sou Sou even taught him Go and drawing, saying that it’s all part of his studying. This surprises Kan U and Sou Sou explains that as long as Ryuu Bi is here, he’ll need to be taught the basic education and knowledge. Go can help nurture one’s foresight while the brush and ink can build one’s character. Of course Ryuu Bi doesn’t understand anything.

Rakuyou, Ryuu Bi & Kakou Ton: Sou Sou allows Ryuu Bi out for one day – but on the condition that Kakou Ton watches over him and Kan U when they’re out. When Ryuu Bi almost runs off by himself, Kakou Ton grabs him and tells him off loudly which only makes Ryuu Bi tear up. He panics and says that he’ll give him sweets and whatever so asks Ryuu Bi to stop making that face pfft. Kan U tells Kakou Ton off, which makes him panic further as to why he’s the bad guy here. Kan U says that he can just gently tell Ryuu Bi and as she does so, Ryuu Bi listens to her and immediately brightens up as he gets to hold her hand. Kakou Ton only sighs at how he has to accompany them for the whole day.

Rakuyou, Chou Hi & Kakou Ton: Kan U and Chou Hi go after some Yellow Turban rebels but see Kakou Ton at the site too. Kakou Ton and Chou Hi start to bicker, and eventually decide to compete as to who can defeat more rebels to decide who is better. But even after that they start to argue who won: Chou Hi who defeated the rebel that looked the strongest vs. Kakou Ton who defeated the rebel that looked like the leader. Their arguing is hilarious with Chou Hi going “What! The one who says “idiot” is an idiot himself! Idiot!!” and Kakou Ton replying “Who is an idiot!! You single-cell organism!!”. Kan U can’t stop them and thinks that they’re similar in a weird way.

Rakuyou, Sou Sou & Kakou Ton: Kan U is ordered by Sou Sou to come along to take care of some Yellow Turban rebels. Sou Sou is joining them as the one who’s supposedly Chou Kaku’s right-hand man is there too, and may be capable of helping the Yellow Turban rebels recover. Sou Sou takes care of him swiftly though, and the others flee out of fear. Kakou Ton mocks at Kan U for feeling any sympathy, and Sou Sou adds that in a war there are only two sides no matter if you’re human or Jyuuza: your side or the enemy’s side. He advises her to throw away her naive thoughts if she wants to live. As much as Kan U understands this, she’d rather not have to face off against a fellow Maozoku anymore, and wonders if both of them don’t feel anything fighting against fellow humans.

Yu Shuu, Ryuu Bi & Chou Hi: Kan U cooks some snacks for Ryuu Bi, though the smell attracts both him and Chou Hi to her side. Ryuu Bi happily offers for everyone to share them, since things taste more delicious that way. They all go out to eat, and Kan U remarks how it’s like the old days. Ryuu Bi is happy to hear how they haven’t changed, though Chou Hi remarks that Ryuu Bi is the one that hasn’t changed the most. Ryuu Bi sadly asks if he will never change, and Kan U reassures him – they both like him as he is. Cheered up, Ryuu Bi says that he’s happy that they’ll always be together.

Yu Shuu, Ryuu Bi & Chou Un: Kan U sees the two of them flying a kite. Chou Un explains that it’s actually used in war times to send messages to soldiers far away, but Ryuu Bi asked to be taught how to handle it so that he can play with it.

Ryuu Bi ❤

Yu Shuu, Chou Hi & Chou Un: The two of them are practising together and take a break, while Kan U brings some cold tea to them. Chou Un praises Chou Hi’s fighting skills, but points out that he just needs to work on his concentration levels. He suggests writing Buddhist scriptures while practising zazen. When Chou Hi hears the explanation for those, he immediately rejects and flees the scene lol.

Yu Shuu, Chou Ryou: Kan U is picking fruits in the forest when she senses someone watching her. It turns out to be Chou Ryou, who is collecting information for Ryo Fu. Kan U is naturally on her guard, and Chou Ryou tries to explain that they’re not intending to invade Yu Shuu or anything. He merely wants to make sure of all the war situations in other territories, and the relationships between each of them. Kan U questions that since it doesn’t matter to Chou An and Chou Ryou agrees so, since Tou Taku is currently on the defensive mode. He adds that in fact, he’s here to collect information on her. This naturally freaks Kan U out and Chou Ryou realises that she’ll always be conscious of him now. He decides to retreat for now and come back to watch and report on her to Ryo Fu when she has forgotten everything. But Kan U feels that there’s no way she can forget this lol.

Yu Shuu, Others: Chou Seihei sees Kan U making sweets for everyone and is reminded of someone he knew in the past. The only difference is that that girl wouldn’t say who the sweets were for as it was her secret with someone else – there was no doubt that she was in love then. Kan U gets embarrassed and denies that she’s in love too, since it’s for everyone and hurries off. Chou Seihei wonders to himself how Kan Rei would think of Kan U now.

Chou An, Ryo Fu 1: Kan U is made to accompany Ryo Fu on her shopping, and she notes that everyone fears Ryo Fu. She even makes unreasonable requests to the shop owner, asking for 100 different types of hair and neck accessories. As she picks something out for Kan U, Ryo Fu also gives her a small hand mirror so that she can see it for herself too. Kan U refuses at first but eventually has to accept it.

Chou An, Ryo Fu 2: Kan U is called to see Ryo Fu, who wants to talk about something urgent. Asking to check her hand, Ryo Fu is shocked to see that Kan U’s nail has a crack it in – that was her urgent matter she wanted to talk about lol. Ryo Fu quickly gives her some cream to apply, and it’s apparently something special concubines used in Yin/Shang Dynasty. Kan U wonders how Ryo Fu can have access to that so easily, but quickly runs off when Ryo Fu makes her advances on her instead.

Chou An, Chou Sen 1: Kan U has to sneak in to buy some food for the Maozoku, ‘cos Tou Taku strictly ordered them to not enter. Chou Sen sees her and calls out to her asking for her agenda. Upon hearing that she isn’t here to see Ryo Fu, Chou Sen can’t be bothered. Kan U explains that she’s buying extra food to celebrate for some kid’s birthday, as all Tou Taku gives them are vegetables. Chou Sen remarks on how troublesome it is and Kan U is surprised to hear that she’s older than her. Chou Sen gets mad and runs off.

Chou An, Chou Sen 2: Kan U asks to see Ryo Fu, wanting to see Ryuu Bi through her. Chou Sen comes in at this point, and makes noise when she hears that she wants to see Ryo Fu. Ryo Fu comes down too and tells Kan U to check her messy hair with the hand mirror she gave her. Chou Sen gets more annoyed that Kan U got something from her lover. Despite Kan U’s efforts to explain, Chou Sen keeps rambling on while Ryo Fu is delighted to see them fighting over her. Kan U decides to give up for today since no one is listening and leaves for now.

Chou An, Chou Ryou, Ryo Fu & Chou Sen: All of them, including Kan U, is accompanying Ryo Fu on her shopping. Ryo Fu laments on how it’s not enough, which surprises Kan U since she has bought enough stuff to have 5 horses lugging it around. Tou Taku gives Ryo Fu special treatment so she still has more than enough money left. Ryo Fu offers to buy stuff for her and Kan U decides to politely refuse by saying that she’s content to just look. However, Ryo Fu takes this as Kan U enjoying spending time with her. Kan U tries to explain otherwise but Ryo Fu tells her not to be shy and they can be together alone next time. While Chou Sen makes noise, Chou Ryou merely registers: oh so this is how one hides embarrassment, lol.

Chou An, Others: The Maozoku are worried about Ryuu Bi, and one elderly man even wants to go off to search for an immortal to help them. The rest are trying to stop him since it may be a myth for all he knows, plus many go off but none have returned as the mountains there are full of dangerous beasts. Kan U persuades him successfully by saying that this is for both their sake and Ryuu Bi’s sake, as no one would be happy if he disappeared by himself and never returned.

En Shuu, Sou Sou & Kakou En: Kan U brings ink and paper to Sou Sou’s room as ordered but he’s not in. Just then, Kakou En comes to report to Sou Sou about the soldiers’ training only to find her. He starts accusing her of coming in to steal documents and luckily for Kan U, Sou Sou returns. After getting the ink and paper from her, he tells Kakou En that he needs to cool his head sometimes – acting impulsively will harm his own men on the battlefield too. He adds that the previous report Kakou En submitted was full of mistakes and tells him to correct it asap. Kakou En immediately runs off to do so and Kan U thanks Sou Sou since intentional or not, he did help her out there.

Just showing the height difference…lol.

En Shuu, Kakou Ton & Kakou En: Outside, a messenger from the Kakou family sees Kan U and after confirming that she works at Sou Sou’s, he asks her to pass the letter to Kakou Ton. Just then, Kakou Ton and Kakou En come out and she passes it on to them. Apparently Kakou Ton’s father is worried about their current condition so Kakou Ton asks Kakou En to write a reply too. Kan U is surprised to hear that Kakou En addresses Kakou Ton’s father as “uncle” aka they’re not brothers. Kakou En explains that he’s from a branch family and so they’re cousins. But they treat each other like real brothers since they’ve been together since young. Kan U remarks that it’s similar to how she sees Chou Hi as a younger brother even though they’re not, and Kakou En takes things the wrong way as he gets mad at being compared to Chou Hi. He doesn’t seem to listen to any of Kan U’s explanation so Kakou Ton tells him to not waste their time and hurries off. Seeing how Kakou Ton cut the conversation, she wonders if he kinda helped her back then.

En Shuu, Chou Ryou: Kan U spots Chou Ryou surrounded by women, apparently drawing out information from them. She decides to slip away but he ends up spotting her and chasing after her. He’s collecting information from all areas to report to Ryo Fu and Kan U lets slip that he’s doing the same work as her too. Chou Ryou immediately gets the picture and tells her to not worry about him telling anyone since he’s a spy here too. Since he went to Yu Shuu to check things, Kan U asks how the Maozoku are doing there. Chou Ryou informs her that they’re well, and he guesses that the only problem would be that Ryuu Bi is lonely.

Jo Shuu, Ryuu Bi & Chou Hi: Ryuu Bi is taking a nap on Kan U’s lap, and Chou Hi happens to spot them when he’s searching for Chou Seihei. Chou Hi starts to make noise, even though Kan U hushes him, Ryuu Bi eventually wakes up. Hearing Chou Hi’s complains, Ryuu Bi asks if he can’t sleep on her lap, and of course Kan U says that he can – so Ryuu Bi rolls on her lap some more lol. Chou Hi starts getting embarrassed as he awkwardly says that he wants to do it too – but ends up running away pffft. Kan U wonders why he got angry and decides to ask him later since Ryuu Bi has fallen asleep on her lap.

Jo Shuu, Ryuu Bi & Chou Un: Ryuu Bi finds that a baby bird has fallen from his nest. Unfortunately, Kan U can’t reach for its nest to put it back. Chou Un comes along and he helps them to do so. Ryuu Bi wonders how he can become like Chou Un – big and kind. Chou Un remarks that Ryuu Bi is kind already. Though he couldn’t put the bird back himself, the actions he took to want to save it is what is important – that’s why he approached Chou Un for help. Kan U agrees with him, and Ryuu Bi gets embarrassed lol. So all that’s left is to get big so he asks Chou Un for the secret. Chou Un ponders over this as it’s a hard question and asks to be given some time lol.

Jo Shuu, Chou Hi & Chou Un: Chou Hi and Kan U are helping out to fix the houses in Jo Shuu. Chou Hi isn’t used to it, as he hurts himself with the hammer. Chou Un comes over ‘cos he heard his loud scream pfft. Kan U feels bad for making Chou Hi work on fixing the chair, but Chou Hi naturally says that it’s nothing – except that he hurts his finger again lol. Chou Un then steps in to show him how to properly hammer in the nail. Seeing Kan U impressed by this, Chou Hi quickly does the same too and he succeeds at first – but ends up hurting the same finger again when he’s distracted lol. Chou Un goes to treat his finger, since he has hurt it thrice already, and tells Chou Hi to be more careful next time. Seeing this, Kan U thinks to herself that they’re really acting like brothers.

Jo Shuu, Chou Ryou: Kan U goes to check on the situation, as En Jutsu’s men seemed to have infiltrated their land. She finds that Chou Ryou has taken care of them already, and is here to pass her a congratulatory message from Ryo Fu, on gaining Jo Shuu – as expected he imitates Ryo Fu’s tone lol. He says that he’s here for something else though and Kan U is worried when he’s asking someone about something “top secret”. Chou Un spots her with Chou Ryou (who escapes in the end) and wonders what they’re up to. On another day, Chou Un sees that Kan U is searching for Chou Ryou, who turns up before them as if nothing happened. In the end, it turns out that he’s only here to ask how to make a certain sweet from Jo Shuu pfft.

Ba Chou

This starts off from their first meeting in Chapter 4. Due to Kan U’s first impression of Ba Chou, she wonders why someone as flippant as him is participating in the battle. As he hesitates in his answer, his men interrupts the conversation and he excuses himself – though he promises to flirt with her properly the next time lol. Later, Kan U asks Chou Seihei more about Ba Chou’s background, and learns that he came far from the North side. He and his people doesn’t actually have any allegiance to the Han reign, so Kan U only wonders further what he’s doing here. One day, Tou Taku’s army invades their camps and both the Maozoku and Ba Chou’s men are told to fend them off ‘cos it’s a “small” invasion. Ba Chou seems hesitant to give out the orders to his men though, so Kan U says that they’ll go ahead on their own. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a “small” invasion at all and just before they are overpowered, Sou Sou sends his men over and they defend successfully.

That night, Kan U sees Ba Chou and questions him about the afternoon’s events. However, he’s reluctant to answer and Kan U notices that he has that similar pained expression from this afternoon. Kan U eventually gets mad and accuses him not being serious – if that’s the case then he should withdraw his men from this war. If not, that half-hearted attitude of his will only hurt his men. As much as she doesn’t have any allegiance to the human affairs, but it concerns the lives of her people and that’s why she chooses to fight. The next day, Kan U apologises for going overboard since she doesn’t know his background. But Ba Chou thanks her instead, as he has been pushing back what’s important to him – the lives of his men. He decides to withdraw his men since he has no allegiance here. But today also happens to be the day of attacking Shisuikan, and Sou Sou orders Kan U to also go and defeat Ka Yuu. Though Ba Chou protests, Kan U accepts this since Sou Sou threatens to kill the Maozoku if otherwise. Ba Chou understands this is her way of protecting her people, and Kan U notices that though she keeps seeing his smile – she always keep seeing this pained expression of his too.

Kan U bids him farewell before going to attack Ka Yuu. Unfortunately his attack proves to be too dominant at first and she has trouble gaining her ground at first. Ba Chou suddenly comes in at this point, much to her surprise. They end up defeating Ka Yuu together. He came here on his own though and told his men to stay behind – but not long after they can hear his men searching for him lol. As Kan U remarks that they must be worried, Ba Chou says the same back to her: even if the Maozoku may be alright, they’ll be upset if anything happens to her. So she shouldn’t keep bearing the burden by herself. Kan U asks why he came after her, and he answers that he can’t return without kissing the girl he has set his eyes on pffft. He insists that he isn’t joking and was attracted to her strong will to protect her people. He finds her similar to his father, and seems to now know what he’s missing. Ba Chou thanks Kan U as he purposely whispers into her ears.

However, Kakou En expresses displeasure at the fact that Kan U and Ba Chou defeated Ka Yuu, calling them eyesores. Sou Sou agrees that while he has control over Jyuuza, Ba Chou’s men are different, especially with concerns to his father (馬騰; Ma Teng). After the battle with Tou Taku is over, Sou Sou seems to have other plans for Ba Chou. Meanwhile, a banquet is held that night to celebrate the fall of Shisuikan. Both Kan U and Ba Chou end up not going and bump into each other in the nearby forest. Kan U thanks him for coming to help her in the afternoon, which causes Ba Chou to feel uneasy with her being so direct. As she laughs at this, he remarks that he’d like to see her smile more – if possible on his bed for the night lol. As he continues to flirt with her, Kan U comments that usually people wouldn’t call her an ideal woman. But to Ba Chou, an ideal woman is someone who is strong in heart and will fight for the sake of those important to her – just like Kan U. He then kisses her on her forehead, as her thanks for this afternoon. Kan U slowly starts to think more dearly of him and enjoys their time together.

But a deciding point arrives when they come to Rakuyou and find that Tou Taku has set it on fire. Kan U wants to go after Tou Taku, as Sou Sou has decided, ‘cos as long as he’s around the Maozoku won’t have peaceful days. Ba Chou wants to withdraw here already since he has done his part, and doesn’t want her to go either. Apparently, Sou Sou had also sent him an appeal to join the alliance against Tou Taku. His people were happy to have a chance to show off their capabilities and that’s why they joined. Yet they were still discriminated against. Moreover, he suspects that they and Maozoku were thrown into that fight against Tou Taku’s men on purpose – as if sending them to their deaths. But Kan U points out that Sou Sou did send his men in the end. In the end, Ba Chou decides to follow her if she insists. But she tells him to return to Ryou Shuu (涼州; Liangzhou) with his men. Stuck between her and his men, Ba Chou suddenly carries her and rides away. They meet Chou Ryou along the way though, who starts to attack them. Kan U is hurt and she starts to fade out. Apparently Chou Ryou’s sword has some special medication on it. He asks Ba Chou to convey Ryo Fu’s message to Kan U: to stop chasing Tou Taku if not the Maozoku will be hurt.

After Chou Ryou leaves, Ba Chou quickly goes to treat her wound. Luckily he has some yakushu (alcoholic beverage for medicinal purposes) and does mouth-to-mouth, I mean feeds her by mouth~ Kan U starts feeling better, but she also gets a bit drunk on the alcohol lol. Ba Chou conveys Ryo Fu’s message to her, and also asks her to return with him to be his bride. He doesn’t want to see her get hurt anymore and promises to protect her, and to take on her burden. But Kan U can’t bear to leave behind her people, as much as she would like to follow his words. In the end, Ba Chou sees her back to Rakuyou without saying another word. They meet Chou Hi on the way back, who starts shouting at Ba Chou for stealing Kan U away. They almost start fighting, but then Ba Chou remarks that Chou Hi would be able to be with her for the rest of his life, and asks for Chou Hi to give him some time now. So he suddenly rides off with Kan U, leaving Chou Hi alone pfft.

They end up in a quiet forest similar to the last time. Ba Chou admits that if it was his past self, he would’ve just taken off with Kan U back to his homeland. But he’ll work hard to mature into someone capable, just like his father. It may be goodbye for today, but it’s not goodbye for the rest of their lives. He promises to come to get her again when the time comes, and kisses her as a proof of that promise. As Ba Chou calls Kan U by her name (he usually calls her 嬢ちゃん), he says that he loves her and she’s the only woman he has kissed. (The ending line by him after the credits is that even though they’re separated for now, Kan U will always be his after that kiss.)

En Shou

This takes place 3 months after Chou Un’s bad end. In the end Kan U never knew the details about Chou Un’s death, but continues to have nightmares of him dying. She followed En Shou to Ki Shuu, where he offered to stay by her side till her ‘wound’ heals. As a result of his constant sweet-talking, Kan U forgets all her responsibilities and worries (Yu Shuu which En Shou governs now, Chou Un, Maozoku) even though she feels bad. Eventually, Kan U soon started to cry less while thinking of Chou Un and everyone else, and instead smile more for En Shou. But one day, she sees some Maozoku being taken by En Shou’s men as prisoners outside her room and as she recalls Sou Sou’s warning to her, she goes to find En Shou. Upon listening to her, his attitude completely changes as he says that their only sin was their Maozoku identity – or as he calls them, monster cats. The “cleaning” he mentioned was referring to them – as long as there are people who desire for their skills, war will continue. En Shou claims that the Emperor has ordered for the Jyuuza to be taken down. Currently they’ve shut themselves in Jo Shuu’s castle but they probably won’t last for long – he can save them though.

As a trusted figure of the Emperor and a noble’s son, he can persuade the Emperor. En Shou tells Kan U to send a letter to Jo Shuu to get them to come out and under En Shou (essentially this gives him control of Jo Shuu). As Kan U hesitates, En Shou questions if she doesn’t believe him, someone who could accept and love her, a monster. Kan U is eventually influenced by his words that she’s dirty etc., and that no one else will love and protect her if even he abandons her. En Shou tells her to remain by his side where he’ll protect her, and if she leaves for Jo Shuu the Emperor may see her as going to lead the rest to rebellion. He then asks her to beg him to save her loved ones, Jo Shuu, and to not abandon her. Hesitantly, Kan U does so and upon saying those words, it was as if something snapped. Something she should’ve held onto – her bonds with her loved ones, hope, and reason. But Kan U feels that she only has En Shou left and doesn’t have anywhere else to go, and will never be forgiven by the Maozoku.

Kan U sends out the letter, and later En Shou assures her that they’ve been saved. But it took him a lot of effort to persuade the Emperor and he may have even fallen out of his favour. He asks Kan U to heal him and forces himself onto her. As En Shou roughly kisses her, Kan U realises that this was the true him all along. He remarks that they’re complete opposites. While she’s quick on the battlefield to defeat enemies, he’s no good with the sword and instead focused on studying, governance, and tactics. Their births, beliefs, paths are all different with no commonalities. According to En Shou, there is only one thing which saves her – the fact that they’re opposite genders, so she can always be his. Kan U thinks to herself that the times spent together with him were first calming, but now it’s sweet, thick and almost numbing – like poison. The more time spent together, her thoughts seem to dull. En Shou comments that she really doesn’t seem to know anything, to which Kan U can only agree – she is the descendant of a youkai after all. Seemingly pleased, En Shou says that it’s alright for her to remain outside the “box”. Kan U fails to understand his words, but she recognises that his smile just now wasn’t fake. As time passes, his attitude changed as he dropped the formalities and a cynical smile would often be worn on his face. But she was happier than the times when he used kind words on her.

One day, a soldier approaches Kan U claiming to be from Yu Shuu. Yu Shuu has spies all over and he finally managed to come into contact with Kan U as he was given the role to watch over her. He can’t tell her straight-out what En Shou really did since she just recovered from her depression, but he’s certain that her letters never got sent out and she’s being lied to. Of course Kan U guessed so long ago, but she could never bring herself to think about it. He says that he’ll come the day after to help her escape. But En Shou seems to have overheard this conversation. Later, Kan U decides to ask En Shou about her letters to Yu Shuu, and he reassures her as he passes her a reply. Unfortunately, she sees that it’s fake as the seal used at the end is not real – the real one uses gold foil in its stamp ink. The next day, the soldier comes to inform Kan U of their escape route. En Shou will be out tomorrow to meet royalty so it’s their one and only chance. It’s Kan U’s last chance to learn to truth, and her last hope. But once again, En Shou seems to have caught up on this.

On the promised day, Kan U is surprised when two of En Shou’s men appear instead to attack her. They claim that En Shou turned down a marriage set-up with a royal princess ‘cos he had her. En Shou appears in time though and kills them both, saying that the price is heavy for laying hands on his toy. He can’t be bothered with the royal princess, someone who can only live within her status “box”. However, Kan U is shaken by something else – the soldiers claimed that they were the ones who killed Chou Un too. Just then, the Yu Shuu spy appears late and is shocked to see En Shou. En Shou naturally doesn’t let him leave alive, even using poison on his sword. Poison on his sword, in the sea of blood spilled upon the room – En Shou’s smile is poison, and so is the man himself. Poison which has captured Kan U’s freedom. En Shou invites her to sleep in his room tonight after what has happened. Though it’s pitiful how the soldier who tried to save her ended up dying, claiming that she as a monster cat only brings others misfortune.

Kan U is influenced into thinking that his death, her father’s death, and even Chou Un’s death are all her fault. There’s no more hope or future for her. Without anywhere to go, with no one who will forgive her, there’s only En Shou. She no longer has the courage to see the truth behind all of En Shou’s lies. En Shou tells Kan U that he’s the only one that can love a monster like her, who will stay by her side – and Kan U replies the same back to him. He had no intentions of handing her to anyone from the first moment he saw her, not Sou Sou or even Chou Un. Even if it meant telling lies and creating something false, as long as he could capture her and now indeed she is his. All she needs to do now is to just feel his love.

Kakou En

The route starts off with a replay of Kakou En’s last conversation with Kakou Ton (from Kakou Ton’s good end), particularly Kakou Ton advising Kakou En that he may see things like he does now if he interacted with Kan U and co. more. Kakou En wonders why they have to accept such despicable existences to mature. But thinking about it, Kakou Ton put his own life on the line to convey to him this.

Time skip to when Sou Sou was the only one that pursued Tou Taku and ends up heavily injured. They decide to retreat and to Kan U’s surprise, Kakou En approaches her. He questions what she’s going to do now, as even if they returned to their village nothing has been solved. Instead, he asks her to return with them. After some thought, Kan U agrees that it may be more favourable to stay with them, and Kakou En assures her that the other Jyuuza will be brought along too. Kakou En even waits her for to follow behind him, as he confidently says that despite the heavy injury, Sou Sou won’t die here. Kan U can only wonder what happened Kakou En say all of this to her. In the end, Kan U joined Sou Sou’s army as a general and the other Maozoku set up a village in a corner of En Shuu.

One day, Kan U chances upon Kakou Ton telling Kakou En off for being late twice in a row already – apparently Kakou En overslept lol. Afterwards, Kakou En spots Kan U and insists that even though they’ve been grouped together to fight alongside recently, Kakou Ton definitely hates it secretly. Kan U merely answers that she knows they dislike Jyuuza, but wonders why he’s talking to her when he could just ignore her. Another day, Kan U is picking mushrooms in the forest when she hears a voice. She decides to track it down and sees Kakou En practicing alone. He senses her presence before she can slip away though. Hearing that she’s picking mushrooms, Kakou En scorns at how they’re so relaxed when it’s in the middle of times of war. Kan U just answers that there’s no choice since the food they’re provided isn’t enough. She knows that Sou Sou plans to immediately go after Tou Taku once he recovers, and even sends Maozoku to check on the situation in Chou An every now and then. As he defeats the last of the Yellow Turban rebels, he’s also been expanding his own army.

Knowing that it’ll be a big battle coming up, Kan U tells Kakou En to work hard. He’s surprised by her remark, asking if she doesn’t feel regretful that he’s being paired up with Kakou Ton instead of her and Kakou Ton. Kan U answers that while they’ve fought together they’re still not 100% there when teamed up so it’s better for her to stay behind after all. Kakou En reveals that Sou Sou wanted all three of them to defeat Ryo Fu together, but he protested to this as he didn’t want Kan U in the picture. Just then, a tiger appears before them. When Kakou En explains that its weakness is the cervical vertebrae, Kan U immediately offers to cooperate by acting as a lure when she attacks, and having him deliver the critical blow. Before he can respond, she goes forth immediately and in the end they defeat it together. Kan U thanks him but he’s yet again surprised. That plan of hers would put her in a dangerous position no matter what so he can’t understand why she trusted him when she’s supposed to hate him. Kan U doesn’t understand his words at first, since she’d thought all along it was the opposite way. But she believed that he would follow her up since he’s a warrior after all. Kakou En still doesn’t understand why she would believe him when he’s not Kakou Ton. He goes back to their previous conversation, that he protested to her involvement at the frontlines. Kan U shrugs at this since she never really thought of participating in it from the start.

Kan U then recalls that he’s good with the bow and arrow, and commends on his precision. Kakou En tells her that it’s merely passing time though, and he’s a sword user just like Kakou Ton. Still, Kan U think that he’s gifted in that aspect and questions why he chooses to use the sword. Kakou En feels that it’s meaningless if he isn’t fighting beside Kakou Ton. He couldn’t protect Kakou Ton “at that time”, and if only he didn’t separate from Kakou Ton then. “This time” he wants to be by Kakou Ton’s side to protect him. Kan U doesn’t understand what he’s referring to, but she can see that it pains him a lot, so she offers to practice with him since it’s more effective that way – though she knows that he may also have his own reasons for practicing alone in a deserted forest. To her surprise, Kakou En accepts it as along as she doesn’t let anyone else know. He tells her to wake him up tomorrow morning for practice. Kan U is taken aback since he’s bad at waking up early yet he wants to do morning practice. But Kakou En insists since he thinks it’s better and less people would be up then too. So after that, Kan U going to wake up Kakou En for practice becomes part of her daily schedule. It’s surprisingly difficult ‘cos Kakou En is hard to wake up lol.

During one practice session, Kakou En prepares to spar as he goes “完全無欠ぅぅ” and Kan U quickly stops, asking if he’s saying some special skill name while doing it. Kakou En confirms this, as he explains that when the special skill 「完全無欠十文字」is complete, he and Kakou Ton will be imprinted in the history of Sou Sou’s army as legends pffffft. Till that is finished, she’ll have to act as Kakou Ton’s replacement for now. Seeing how he’s excited to the point where sparkles seem to appear in his eyes, Kan U can’t help but find him surprisingly innocent and pure. One morning, she goes to wake Kakou En up but sees that he’s having a nightmare. She manages to wake him up, though he falls back asleep soon after lol. It’s the day of the battle against Ryo Fu though so she decides to let him sleep in for today and will call him up later. Kakou En seems to actually be awake though, as he mutters how it would’ve been nice if that was really only a dream.

On the battlefield later, Kan U is surprised to see Kakou En at the back, and he explains that he got separated by the enemies. He appears confused as to why she’s not with Kakou Ton, but then recalls that it was himself who asked for it. He quickly goes to find Kakou Ton and Kan U follows after him as she’s worried. Kakou En finds Kakou Ton in time, but he isn’t quick enough to protect Kakou Ton as he’s shot in the eye by an arrow. Kan U quickly goes to support him up, as he soon pulls the poisoned arrow out. Seeing Kakou En shaken, she tells him to hang in there and that they need to treat Kakou Ton’s wound asap. She recalls what Sou Sou said: if it’s the three of them they can overcome anything together. After which, Kakou Ton is treated though Kakou En blames himself for everything, and never visited him once. Not even Sou Sou knows where he has disappeared off to these past few days. So Kan U decides to go find him and eventually discovers him by the river.

Kakou En says that he wants to leave Sou Sou’s army, ‘cos at this rate he’s going to keep doing things he can’t recover – he blames himself for all that happened, Sou Sou who was hurt badly, Kakou Ton who lost his left eye. He can’t change the results no matter how hard he tries. If only he had more excellent skills, perhaps he could’ve changed things. He lashes out at Kan U, and how unfair it is that she was born with the physical abilities she has, and gained the trust she has from both Sou Sou and Kakou Ton – she has everything he wanted. Kakou En breaks down and it’s the first time Kan U has seen him shed tears. She can’t help but think to herself how clumsy he is, and silly to blame it all on himself. She’s sure Kakou Ton would’ve thought the same. Kan U wonders if he constantly blamed himself, and that resulted in him going to train in secret. But somehow both his clumsiness and silliness feels dear to her. As she reaches out to comfort him, Kakou En slaps her hand away and unintentionally, making Kan U lose her balance and falling into the river.

Shocked, Kakou En realises that he’s going to hurt both her and Kakou Ton again and goes to save Kan U. As he drags her out, Kan U remains unconscious so he does mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. \o/ When Kan U regains consciousness, she realises he saved her and thanks him. Kakou En doesn’t understand why she’s saying this, since it’s all his fault in the first place. And he hates her for that hypocrisy, instead of just blaming him. Kan U answers that he isn’t at fault though. It’s alright for him to remain the way he is – someone who works hard at his training to the point of forgetting to sleep or eat. Kakou En tears up at her words, and Kan U tells him to stay in Sou Sou’s army as both Sou Sou and Kakou Ton need him. Kan U doesn’t have the energy to wipe his tears or to hug him, so she tells herself that she’ll definitely do so tomorrow and falls asleep. She wakes up next back in her room, and quickly goes to find Kakou En. She sees the Maozoku gathered outside though and learns from them that Ryuu Bi has been kidnapped by En Shou’s spies. She implores Sou Sou to let her go.

On her way there, Kan U is surprised to see what appears like shadows approaching her. She’s afraid to attack since she isn’t sure what their true identity are, perhaps they’re spirits or even youkai. Kakou En turns up here as he remarks that he finally made it in time. He tells Kan U that warriors shouldn’t be afraid of such things, though she thinks to herself that he once called them descendants of youkai. Kakou En tells her not to interfere since this is his fight and he swiftly defeats all to have one shadow left standing. They’re equally matched though and Kakou En stops it from attacking Kan U, who soon realises that its target is actually her. But Kakou En insists that she doesn’t interfere, as he recalls Kakou Ton saying that one should correct one’s own mistakes. Kakou En manages to defeat it and it disappears into thin air, as with the other shadows. But Kan U is shocked to see him fall to his knees and cough up blood despite this. As she rushes to his side, Kakou En is relieved that she’s alright.

He recalls Kakou Ton saying that the reason they went on different paths was ‘cos he didn’t understand and accept them. But now Kakou En finally understands just how hefty his mistake was, and how valuable the time he can no longer recover was. And the more he got to knew Kan U, the more painful that realisation was. His dream was to see a peaceful world unified by Sou Sou alongside Kakou Ton. That’s why he thought that he needed to follow Kakou Ton all the way on the same path, but was actually always restraining himself. Kakou En asks Kan U to listen to his last repentance, and not to leave when she wanted to get help. He wonders if someone as sinful as him can still have his wish fulfilled, and Kan U reassures him that he’ll definitely see it with Sou Sou and Kakou Ton. To her surprise, Kakou En says that she has to be together with them too. Kakou En admits that he had always been afraid of her, but now it’s different. As Kan U starts hearing a strange noise, Kakou En says that this life of his is reaching its limit even though he has lots to tell her, and to apologise for. But first, he thanks her.

Kakou En finally realised that he was on the wrong path – being stubbornly attached to Kakou Ton, fussing over his sword skills, throwing away his initial beliefs. He knew this all along but refused to admit it. If he admitted it, he was afraid that no one would need him anymore. His skills were inferior to Kan U’s, and he was afraid that if he admitted it all he would’ve lost his place. He finally understands what Kakou Ton wanted to convey to him, to the point of risking his own life. Now he can finally say it – he’s thankful to have met Kan U. Kakou En thanks Kan U once more, before disappearing before her very eyes. Suddenly, it’s as if Kan U woke up from a dream as she finds herself in the forest again. She recalls that she came here with Kakou Ton to visit Kakou En’s grave, as Kakou Ton is handling the offerings and she’s tidying up the grave. But for some reason, it’s as if she was dreaming and finds herself crying – not that she can recall what her dream was about or the reason she’s crying. But Kan U feels an indescribable pain in her, and recalls the phantom pains Kakou Ton mentioned having. She wonders if she’s feeling something similar. As she touches the gravestone, the pain seems to ease as she closes her eyes and recalls Kakou En: The scenery of Sou Sou’s path spreading and uniting the chaotic lands……if I could see that together with Anija (Kakou Ton) and you……I’m happy.

The last scene shows Kakou Ton dragging Kan U out to go to the banquet the night she defeated Ka Yuu (?). Kakou En is with them though, as he talks in a friendly manner to Kan U. Kakou Ton gets embarrassed when he realises he’s holding Kan U’s hand and lets her go. Kakou En takes her hand as they catch up with Kakou Ton, since Sou Sou called for all three of them. (The ending line by him after the credits is that the happiest thing for Kakou En is that he met Kan U, and that he’ll see her again.)

Note: If it isn’t clear, Kakou En probably received what was like a chance to travel back in the past to redeem himself – but that doesn’t change the fact that he died. That explains why he knew what was going to happen. The shadows he fought against were most likely himself and the 20 men he brought along, when he first wanted to kill Kan U. I’m guessing that the last scene is an illusion, even though he does say “see you” at the very end.

Overall

Some of the Momozono scenarios were really cute, but others were just going through the motion (ie. Chou Sen) – they’re all rather short though so it isn’t too difficult to finish everything. Ba Chou’s route was a nice surprise, he’s quite the romantic flirt. My face was all “D8” throughout En Shou’s ‘cos it was just so sad to see Kan U be influenced into thinking that she’s inferior etc. The writing was good though and I found En Shou’s point about living within own status “box” interesting. Kakou En’s was the biggest, most bittersweet surprise ever, and I didn’t expect myself to cry over it. Omg and I actually support this OT3 now, they’re adorable.

93 pages, 6 pens

Concluding Thoughts: The battle of Jyuuzaengi lasted for a month with over 80k words, with the sacrifice of 93 pages and 6 pens. Sobs. I need to stop being so lame. Okay I actually enjoyed the game. Like most of the past games I picked this up for Ishida but it was nice to see a colourful cast and dynamic character interaction. Though they simplified the story it was based on, it was still an interesting read and I had fun cross-referencing. I can’t say that it was epic, but some of the routes shone more than others. It has a long common route but trust me, you’ll be happy to skip over the common content since the game is still pretty lengthy. I have to thank my dear friend, Hitsuji, for recommending me the play order I played in ‘cos I think that contributed to my enjoyment. I recommend following the same order but if you don’t want to, it would still be good to play Chou Hi’s route first.

In the end I think I enjoyed Ryuu Bi and Kakou Ton’s routes the most, and in addition Kakou En’s special route. Kan U was a strong heroine, but at times she was too slow in the emotional department for me. But that got better as I progressed with each route. Anyway, I hope that there is potential for a fandisk at least for my favourites. If not I may turn to the drama CDs instead since the scenarios look fun.

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Thank you very much for this!
Eh—? I can’t believe i haven’t replied to this! I actually read this quite some time ago, though?!
ah, nevermind. Well then, can i just say…Ba Chou’s and Kakou En’s route were really cool! Ba Chou was an interesting character, and i would love it if they did actually meet again in the future and live together happily—!Kakou En’s was just…-sobs- it was adorable, but i already knew the ending…i’m so, so sad…it was moving, but it brings me sorrow…-cries in a corner-

Kakou En though. /cries buckets It’s so bittersweet yet beautiful at the same time. But I got confused with what the hell happened, only to be cleared in his dying moments. Then got confused again with their scene together in the end because Kakou Ton already have the eyepatch but that would be impossible since the banquet happened before they fought Ryo Fu, right? Not to mention the sudden disappearance of the eyepatch in the CG (which I can totally understand bec why make another one). Anyway, bottomline is the eyepatch is misleading. XD

Do they have Ba Chou route in the FD? Bec their reunion would be totally sweet! ////

Yeah the last scene is confusing right? At first I thought that it was a twisted flashback of the banquet. But then I went to read some pixiv fan comics and maybe another suggestion would be that it’s sometime in the future in which there’s only Kan U and Kakou Ton left. But then Kakou En’s spirit is kinda watching over them, since you realise that none of the two really answer him back. Hmm~

I’m not sure!! He isn’t listed in Jyuuzaengi 2’s website so it’s hard to say.

OH MY GOD. There’s a Ba Chou route?? O.O aklfjalsdfjas
I’ve been hoping for his route but since the guide I’m following doesn’t list that (or I’m not reading carefully lol). But yay Ba Chou route! \o/ And pfft Kakou En route. Idk if i’ll be happy or what seeing how he despises the Maouzoku people.

Oh and I have a question for Momozono. Do you have to read all or some of them while in a certain route or you can read them after playing all the main routes? This game is kinda confusing me with all the ‘side trips’ wwww.

I ended up loving Kakou En’s route a LOT so seeing how we have similar opinions most of the time I think you will too. \o/

For Momozono, not all are accessible. The scenarios are divided by location – so you can only read Rakuyou ones while Kan U and co. are in Rakuyou for example. Next, some scenarios have requirements. For example, you need to read Ryuu Bi 1 before moving onto Ryuu Bi 2. Or you need to read Ryuu Bi 1 and Chou Hi 1 before reading Ryuu Bi & Chou Hi’s one. But when you want the good end, you should read all of that character’s Momozono scenarios since some will add to favourability. I recommend making save points in Sou Sou/Chou Ryou/Chou Un route just before the Momozono sections so that you can read any remaining Momozono stories later on. (: I say this ‘cos only in Chou Ryou’s route Kan U goes to Chou An. Only in Kakou Ton/Sou Sou’s route does Kan U go to En Shuu and so on.

After you finish the required route/end, you can access the side routes from the Momozono option on the title screen! I think you should be able to already see Ba Chou’s one there since it should be unlocked already? En Shou and Kakou En’s will unlock there too.

Instead of En Shou I wish they gave Enjutsu a bonus route, whenever I see him talk or have a dialogue input, I kept thinking that he would make a good “Ore-sama Tsundere”! Am I right?! I always thought he was cute! And dude it’s Itou Kentarou! Kyaa! XD

Thank you for the heart-warming summary (or translation, that will do far more justice). 😀

I was unconvinced of the game quality initially, and now that you point it out, I especially dislike the hairstyle (the art, actually), as if they had some sort of hair rebonding pfft.

Aside from that, I agreed that Kakou Tan had the best chemistry with Kan U, as if Otomate suddenly geared up its typical bland stereotype to character with reality check-up. Hopefully this trend will continue in NORN9, I’m expecting big things from it. ^_-

Joking aside, I loves how detailed your reviews always are (urgh, yep, been stalking you for years oh la la), since I understand a lot more about the contents without repeating a dialogue countless times just to identify certain kanji. Oh the torture of being a 1st year in learning Japanese… *sigh*

LOL hair rebonding. It’s ironic how most people were probably attracted to the game’s art but now I can’t get your hair rebonding comment out of my head. XD

I would think Red Entertainment has some credit for the decent quality of Jyuuzaengi! But since NORN9 has some of the same staff as Jyuuzaengi hopefully we can expect awesome things too~

And I’m so glad to see that I’m not the only one in love with Ryuu Bi ❤

I can understand how it hinders your gameplay. But everyone has to start out somewhere, so hopefully as you progress you'll be able to enjoy the games better! In the meantime, I'm glad that my reviews are helpful. ^^

Do you mean Kakou En…? I’m pretty sure that after interacting with Kan U more in his own special route, he fell for her. (: Yeah Ba Chou was sweet but he only appeared for a bit in the main story. I’m not sure how they’ll create a full route for him. ^^;